Tag: newton hills state park

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In Full Swing

By Christian Begeman

For the last seven years, I’ve tried to visually document the first signs of new life in “spring journals.” From the first wildflowers to the arrival of songbirds, rambling nature walks through parks in southeastern South Dakota have become increasingly fun. In years past, I usually started documenting signs of spring in March — and sometimes as early as February — but the last two winters have been long and trying. This time, I started my journal entries on the day after a major blizzard struck on April 12. It is amazing how much changes on the Great Plains in a 30-day window. We’ve gone from feet of snow on the ground in mid-April to a near 80-degree day in mid-May, with birds and bumblebees in the air instead of snowflakes. All this change makes it quite difficult to not get caught up in spring fever … and I’m OK with that.

April 13

I found a patch of snow trillium in Newton Hills State Park living up to its name standing strong above the recent snow accumulation.

April 15

I decided to take a walk around Palisades State Park. I discovered a mixed flock of golden-crowned and ruby-crowned kinglets foraging in the cedar trees above the quartzite cliffs. These tiny birds were fearless and foraged all around me as if I wasn’t there.

April 19

The evening sun warmed the first butterflies of the season at Union Grove State Park, including this eye-catching Eastern comma.

April 21

On Easter Sunday I travelled through the glacial hills between Eureka and Leola in McPherson County on my way home from visiting family. I took a couple gravel road detours to look for pasqueflower stands and was not disappointed.

April 24

For only the second time ever, I found blooming white fawn lily (or trout lily) flowers at Union Grove State Park. Although not a rare wildflower in general, it is rare for our state. It has only been documented along Brule Creek in Union County.

May 2

My first spring hike at Big Sioux Recreation Area near Brandon turned up brush flowers and yellow rumped warblers catching insects out of mid-air above the hiking trails.

May 4

While returning from a hike at Newton Hills State Park, I pulled off I-29 at the Canton exit to go west a few miles. I caught a striking spring sunset over West Prairie Lutheran in rural Lincoln County.

May 7

Another hike at Palisades State Park turned up a rare look inside a raccoon den in a hollowed out tree. This young coon looked like he was just waking up from a nap, and I was a bit jealous. He looked quite cozy in there with his siblings.

May 9

I took a walk around sunset at the Japanese Gardens of Terrace Park and saw a female common yellowthroat warbler frolicking on the edge of Covell Lake.

May 10

While walking a trail along the northeastern cliffs of Palisades State Park, I was buzzed by my first ruby-throated hummingbird of the season. I turned to follow and found a good nectar source (Missouri gooseberry shrub blossoms). I waited for more than half an hour as the sun sank lower in the sky. Just as I thought I had missed my chance, the hummingbird returned with a couple friends; one of them allowed me to get this photo. It was a memorable close encounter with nature, and I was thrilled to come away with a photo (in focus) to remember it by.

May 11

There is a lot of water around this spring. Too much water for many people. I was crossing a very full and fast moving Skunk Creek just west of Ellis at sunset, and the colorful sky reflected on the rushing water looked like an abstract painting.

May 12

After church on Sunday morning, I took a walk at the Sioux Falls Outdoor Campus and got a nice look at this blackpoll warbler. He, like the majority of warblers migrating through this time of year, has made his way north from as far as Central America and won’t stop for the breeding season until reaching the boreal forests of Canada.

May 13

There are few aromas I like better than plum blossoms on a spring breeze. This orange-crowned warbler at the Big Sioux Recreation Area also likes flowerings because they attract nectar-seeking insects that must be quite tasty.

May 14

The temperature was near 80 degrees in Sioux Falls, and I spent some time walking through a very busy Terrace Park after work. With lilacs just beginning to open and ducklings on Covell Lake, spring appears to be in full swing on the upper Great Plains, and that is very good news.

Christian Begeman grew up in Isabel and now lives in Sioux Falls. When he’s not working at Midco he is often on the road photographing South Dakota’s prettiest spots. Follow Begeman on his blog.

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A Walk in the Woods

By Christian Begeman

I am not a man of the trees. I grew up under the open sky and rolling prairie. Trees were something I had to mow around in the back yard or cut down for firewood in the crick. A forest to me was any track of trees wider than three across. Therefore any story or fairy tale that featured mysterious woods held all the more magic for me. When I first hiked in the silent Ponderosa pines of the Black Hills, I was surprised at how quiet the world became. Nowadays, when I walk in the woods, I notice other things. I hear songs of unseen birds, see the flicker of a butterfly wings and catch glimpses of wildflower color, all of which make great subjects to put in front of a camera.

Photographing unseen birds, however, is impossible. Finding those birds is why I’ve spent more time in the woods of Eastern South Dakota this year than any other. It started in February when a local birder reported seeing Northern Saw-whet owls at Newton Hills State Park. This little owl is usually only found on the western side of the state. I had never seen one before and after three unsuccessful trips, I nearly walked into one resting in some young cedars north of the Horse Camp area of the park. The elfin owl looked at me with wide and unblinking eyes, seemingly unconcerned and possibly a little annoyed. I slowly backed away. The owl began to relax and fall back asleep. It may seem like I’m overstating things, but it felt like I was in one of those old fairy tales for just a moment.

Last spring I witnessed/photographed the warbler and songbird migration for the first time. I saw bold and brightly colored birds that I’d never seen before. I guess I was hooked because this spring I was back in the woods searching for more. It is a lesson in patience and listening. At Lake Herman State Park near Madison, I sat for a couple of hours in the trees as waves of warblers made their way through every 10 minutes or so. At Newton Hills State Park, I heard the distinct buzz of a hummingbird along the trail. I sat for an hour or two watching two male Ruby-throated hummingbirds make their rounds from perched preening to feeding on flowering bushes and wild bergamot blooms then achieving amazing aerial acrobatics while squabbling with each other — and then starting the sequence all over again.

I have a goal to photograph all the colorful birds that call South Dakota home. One that has eluded me to this day is the Scarlet Tanager. They are best found in Union Grove State Park or Newton Hills and are colored crimson red with black wings. This year, I made three separate trips to find them. I also took time to learn their song and call. This helped me find a female at dusk at Union Grove, but I could not get a decent photo. Later in the week, as I began another search at Newton Hills, a Summer Tanager flew to a tree next to me and gave me a long look. It was a real treat because the Summer Tanager is much rarer to find in South Dakota than the Scarlet. Later in the day, I finally saw my first male Scarlet … well, his tail feathers anyway. By the time I spotted him, he was flying deep into the tangled woods. I was disappointed. Then I thought that maybe this was an invitation.”Come back into the woods. Lose yourself amongst the leaves, listen to the song I sing and maybe one day we will meet.” I look forward to that day.

Christian Begeman grew up in Isabel and now lives in Sioux Falls. When he’s not working at Midcontinent Communications he is often on the road photographing South Dakota’s prettiest spots. Follow Begeman on his blog.

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Dakota Awakening

By Christian Begeman

Another spring is settling in. I like to muse that the season is much more than simply another tilt of the planet back towards the sun. It’s the annual promise of new life. It’s another chance to smell rain on the wind. It’s another year to chase the light and see what is beyond the next bend. Springtime provides a lot to be thankful for, but also is a time of nostalgia for me. I remember life awakening on the farm, the smell of the first cut grass, the song of the meadowlark from a distant fencepost and the smell of plowed earth at planting time. This year, the season’s signature flourish of raindrops and rainbows have been few and far between, but thankfully that has not stopped the return of waterfowl on the wind, the greening of the grass and the budding of leaves. The songbirds and wildflowers are back, there’s new warmth in the breeze and the sky seems a bit more blue. Happy Spring everyone!

March 11

While checking the status of ice on area lakes, I startled a large group of migrating waterfowl hanging out in a pond of snowmelt near Silver Lake in northeast Hutchinson County.

March 20

On the official first day of spring I took a sunset hike around the edge of Buffalo Slough south of Chester. All ice is completely gone.

March 31

I found a rather large, wild pasqueflower patch a few miles south of Lake Vermillion including a lovely little natural bouquet of five.

April 4

Just like last spring, a lunar eclipse took place, but dawn approached too quickly to see the full”blood moon.” This photo was taken roughly 20 minutes before totality above Skresfrud Lutheran of rural Lincoln County. Since I was already up, I checked the bird feeders at Good Earth State Park and watched the early bird (robin) get its worm.

April 5

Temperatures reached the low 70s on this Easter Day. In the afternoon, I went looking for snow trillium at Newton Hills State Park and found many blossoms as well as a half dozen Question Mark butterflies soaking up the day’s warmth amongst the last year’s leaves.

April 12

A spring day for the books! First I explored Union Grove State Park to find an early flowering bush along the trail. Later, after a brief thunderstorm passed, an afternoon rainbow graced the sky over the fields of Union County. In the evening another rainbow appeared on the northwest edge of Vermillion and the magic was far from over. As I drove back to Sioux Falls, the setting sun painted the retreating rain clouds pink and blue north of Chancellor.

April 18

A steady, light rain fell for most of the afternoon in Sioux Falls. It was much needed moisture. I spent some time in the Japanese Garden area of Terrace Park to see if I could capture the mood of the day. I was accompanied by a variety of geese, ducks and songbirds, including a male northern cardinal with raindrops glistening on its vibrant feathers.


Christian Begeman grew up in Isabel and now lives in Sioux Falls. When he’s not working at Midcontinent Communications he is often on the road photographing South Dakota’s prettiest spots. Follow Begeman on his blog.

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Searching for Spring

By Christian Begeman

The last two years I have chronicled my search for spring in South Dakota in this column. In 2012, it was a very mild winter and an early spring. Last year saw a nasty April ice storm and spring seemed to tarry until almost mid-May. This year it seems like winter and spring are in a tug of war. A handful of beautiful and warm days are followed by gusty, cold winds that chill to the bone. I’m hopeful the last cold spell is done by the time this column is posted, but who knows. This is South Dakota, where the weather does what it wants when it wants.

March 9

With temperatures in Sioux Falls nearing 60, I went for a Sunday afternoon drive. The snow along the back road ditches of Kingsbury and Lake counties was dirty, dusty and full of rooster pheasants staking out their territory for the coming spring. Southeast of Lake Thompson just before sunset, I witnessed three flocks of snow geese converge in a cornfield. These were the first snow geese of the year for me.

March 16

I happened to catch the full Worm Moon rising through the hazy evening air in rural Turner County. It’s called the Worm Moon because it’s the time of year that earthworms begin stirring in the rapidly warming soil.

March 19

Spring-like showers moved through the area even though the temperatures only topped out in the mid 40s. North of Humboldt I happened upon a rare scene of spring and winter clashing. A rainbow with accompanying snow geese hung in the sky above a small lake with ice fishermen still on it. It is also the time of the year when the sun sets due west, which can be problematic when driving east/west roads in the evening or early morning. However, it can make for an interesting picture as I found at Island Lake on the border of McCook and Minnehaha County.

March 20

The first official day of spring. A co-worker told me she saw over 30 bald eagles near her home north of Hartford the night before. After work I investigated, and found 18 still there. One was perched on a tree not far from a county road bridge over Skunk Creek. After a minute or two of him watching me take his photo from the bridge, he decided he didn’t like the looks of me after all and flew to a new perch.

March 22

Two days into spring and it certainly didn’t feel like it. The temps only got up to the mid-20s and the wind was bitter. The sunset in southwest Turner County, however, looked warm and inviting.

March 27

A heavy wet snow fell most of the day. The weather system began to clear just before sunset allowing me to get some interesting images of Zion Lutheran Church and the area northwest of Wall Lake.

March 29

On my way to Fort Pierre, I saw thousands of snow and white fronted geese flocking at Lehrman Slough near the Spencer exit on I-90. It is always impressive to see so many birds concentrated in one little area.

April 6

Spring is knocking on the door again. The high temp is just under 70 degrees and I spotted my first pasqueflower of the year at Lake Vermillion Recreation Area. Only three blooms were showing and each was probably just a day or two old.

April 9

The temperature hit 81 in Sioux Falls. After work, I drove down to Newton Hills State Park to search for snow trillium. I’ve never seen or photographed this wildflower before, but according to the March/April 2014 issue of South Dakota Magazine, they grow on northward facing slopes under the trees. Sure enough I found several little clumps of the white flowers pushing through the dead leaf carpet. Another sign that spring is winning the battle of the seasons!

April 10

After work there was very little wind and the temps were hanging in the mid-60s, so I drove to one of my favorite known pasque patches in Hanson County. Clouds came up from the west to obscure the late sun, but the soft evening light and no wind made for unique conditions to take a portrait of our state flower.

April 14-15

A bright full”Pink Moon” began to rise just before sunset. It is called a pink moon because this is the time of the year when the wild ground phlox usually starts to bloom. Ironically this full moon turned to a blood moon just after 2 a.m., as a full lunar eclipse took place. I tried to use Sioux Falls landmarks to frame the moon shots including the Old Courthouse Museum clock tower and St. Joseph Cathedral’s spires. The night air was brisk, but the calendar now shows that April is half over. Spring must be here for good, right? Only time will tell.

Christian Begeman grew up in Isabel and now lives in Sioux Falls. When he’s not working at Midcontinent Communications he is often on the road photographing South Dakota’s prettiest spots. Follow Begeman on his blog.